Despicable Me Any Good?

Universal Pictures has had somewhat of a tough year at the box office so far, so hopefully their investment in off-shore CG work to the likes of Despicable Me while change their momentum.

Despicable Me Reviewed

Fortunately, the first reviews for Despicable Me are positive. The only catch is whether or not the film has done enough to garner an audience for opening weekend. Well, these reviews should help.

Variety
There's nothing like a little world domination to melt the most dastardly evildoer's heart. Since villains so often steal the show in animation, "Despicable Me" smartly turns the whole operation over to megalomaniacal rogue Gru. Somewhere between the Grinch and Ernst Stavro Blofeld (and featuring a hunchbacked, hook-nosed look worthy of Charles Addams), the Steve Carell-voiced character feels like something Universal can franchise, if only they can convince auds to see it. Global prospects look solid (but hardly stellar) for this French-made 3D toon, the first in U's all-ages animation deal with Chris Meledandri's Illumination Entertainment deal.

Despicable Me

THR
A fun 3D cartoon about a supervillain who goes up against three young orphans.

Working without apology from the Pixar game book, Universal's first 3D-animated movie, "Despicable Me," captures much of what one likes about Pixar cartoons. Starting with a cute yellow creature who appears before the opening credits mimicking Pixar's bouncy table lamp, "Despicable" adopts the Pixar principle that all things which populate a child's fantasia -- whether toys on a bed, monsters in dreams or the robots and superheroes of science fiction -- are very, very real.